Hydraulic turbine.



F. OESTERLEN.

HYDRAULIC TUBBIN. urnlouron Hum Jun: 2s, i912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

/VVENTOR VV/T/VESSES A; @mrneys FRITZ OESTERLEN, 0F HEIDENHEIM, BRENZ, GERMANY.`

HYDRAULICl TUBBINE.

v Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 1 0, 1912.

Application sied June 2s, 1912. semi No. 706,485.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FRITZ OESTERLEN, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, and residing at Heidenheim, Brenz, Germany, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Hydraulic Turbines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to hydraulic turbines and particularly to multiple vane wheel turbines, the object of my invention being lto so improve the construction thereofas to increase 'their efliciency when some only of the vane wheels are working.

The invention is here described with relation to a double vane wheel turbine of the Francis type, viz., in which the flow is from.

. the outside inward'. Turbines of this type tric suction pipes into which the several vane wheels of a multiple wheel turbine severally discharge, Iit is possible to overcome the objection that t-he suction .pipe has too great a capacity when only certain of the vane wheels are working, the second and more serious ditliculty still remains, viz. that the non-working vane wheel revolves in the stagnant back water. In order to relieve this ditliculty, and to prevent the non-worlrl,

ing vane wheel from acting as a brake through its rotation in the vback water. and

likewise'to prevent the suction of air at .l atmospheric pressure from the suction tube of the non-working vane wheel into the tube of the working wheel through the joint between the working vane wheel and its suction tube thus lessening the vacuum in''the latter, .the present invention contemplates an arrangement whereby air is admitted to vthe suction tube of the non-working vane wheel in such quantity and so regulated that in this suction tube the column of back water is lowered below the blades of the norfworking vane wheel while at the same t-ime it is maintained at a height suiiicient to cover the joint between the suction tube and the working vane wheel. j

The regulation of the air inlet can be accompli'shed in a very simple manner byl an air.` inlet valve carried or controlled by a suitably arranged float valve. In turbines of the .character here considered, such av float valve would have to be arranged in'a very small space, and consequently the present invent-ion contemplates as another feature thereof, the arrangement of the float valve mechanism in the machine room above t-he turbine or in an equally convenient and accessible place, from which the float valve may becontrolled.

In theaccompanying moie or less diagrammatic drawings, Figures l and 2 are lations in which the invention is embodied in different forms.

In the form shown in Fig. 1, the rotor a of theidouble vane wheeled turbine, possesses `vertical sections through two turbine instalan inner vane wheel k2 and anouter vane wheel k1. The usual suction pipe s1 receives the discharge from the latter, while the inner vane wheel k2 discharges into a special suction pipe 82 concentric with the pipe s1. The inner suctionipipe s2 and the partition wall b meet at the overlap joint t. A chambery opens from the suction pipe s1 of the outer vane wheel k1 at the desired height for the float valve. In this normally aii tight chamber is arranged a floatv m which carries an air inlet valve o. The float m holds the valve lv shut when the water stands at the desired height in the chamber. Should the water rise, the float lifts the valve lv and admits air -until the water has descended again to the proper height.

In `the second exemplary installation shown in Fig. 2, a pipe 1' opening at its lower end to the suction tube s1 at the desired height, places the same in communica,- tion with a normally air tight chamber g located in a room above the turbine. In this chamber g a float m is arranged, which controls the air valve fv. extending downward from the chamber A vertical tube u y opens'at its, lower end into a water filled vessel f. By reason of the fact that cham- 'ber.g is air tight and its partial vacuum corresponds to the vacuum in the suction tube s1, in view of their connection through tube 1', Water is sucked from f into g to a height [1,2- corresponding to the vacuum column h1 in the suction tube. The chamber f is filled with water to such extent that when the water in the suction pipe s1 is at the desired Vheight,'the iuid'in the chamber g is at a A height which insures the closure of the valve 'chambers g and f may be filled with any desired fluid e. y.,oil or mercury. In this case the height of the vacuum column h2 would vary according to the specific grav ity of the liquid employed 4and would be greater or less than h1.

The vacuum column itl varies with the rise or fall of the level of the tail race. Consequently' in the arrangement of ythe chamber g Vin the machine room above the turbine as in Fig. 2, it is necessary to vary the height 'of the level of the fluid in the vessel f with the rise or fall of the tail race. 'Ihis can be done in any suitable way,

c. q. by the running oil or in of fluid inl the vessel f, or by manually raising or lowering the vessel. A simple automatic regu-4 lation for this is accomplished however by mounting the vessel f on a rod carried by the float 7) in the tail race, so that the vessel is raised or lowered by the loat f. Where a liquid other than wateris used in the chamber y and vessel f, means must y be provided between the iloat and the vessel f to insure a proper variation of the height of the liquid in the latter. The valve lw closes the tube 1' absolutely when both vane wheels are working. Instead of the outer suction pipe s1, obviously the inner pipe s2 maybe subjected in this manner to the regulation of its vacuum, in which case the outer vane wheel k1 would be driven and the inner vane wheel 7a2 be cut olf from the water. l

The height of the vacuum column h1 (h2) is naturally regulatable at will and varies under dilerent conditions. Practically the level of the water in suction pipe s1 will always reach and cover the joint t.

Instead of only two vane wheels, obviously three or more can be employed of which one or more may be shut oil' and regulated in the manner stated.

I claim as my. invention il. A multiple turbine of the type described having an independent suction discharge tube for each vane wheel, in combination with means for admitting air to the suction tube of at least one of said vane wheels whereby the stagnant vacuum water column standing therein :when the flow is cut oil from its vane wheel, may be partially lowered to a position in which it is out of contact with the non-working vanes, substantially as described.

2. A multiple turbine ,of the type described having an independent suction discharge tube for each vane wheel, in combination with means for admitting air to the suction tube of at least one of said vane wheels, said means being automatically controlled to admit sufficient air to lower the stagnant vacuum water column standing in said tube when the flow is cut ofi therefrom, to a point below the vanes of said nonworking vane wheel while maintaining it at a height sufficient to cover the joint between said tube and the adjacent working vanering discharging at full vacuum into the adjacent suction tube, substantially as described. 3. A multiple turbine of thetype described having an independent suction disvcharge tube for each vane wheel, in combination with float-valve controlled means for admitting air to the suction tube of at least one of said vane Wheels whereby the stagnant vacuum Water column standing therein when the iow is cut olli' from its vane wheel, may be partially lowered to -a position in which it is out of contact with the non-working vanes, substantially as described.

4. Av multiple turbine 0f the type described having an independent suction discharge tube for each vane wheel, in combination with iioat-valve controlled means for admitting 10G air to the suction tube of at least one of said vane wheels whereby the stagnant vacuum water column standing therein when the flow is cut off from its vane wheel, may be partially lowered to a position in which it is out of contact with the non-working vanes, said float-valve mechanism being arranged ata point vertically remote from the turbine, together with an air tube. connecting said float valve chamber with the suction tube, for the purpose described.

5. A multiple turbine of the type described having an independent suction discharge tube for each vane wheel, an air tube leading from one of said suction tubes to a. normally airtight float chamber, a fluid container below said float chamber, a tube extending from said float chamber to said fluid ,chamber and terminating below the fluid level in the latter, whereby a va'cuum column is created in said tube and float chamber corresponding to the vacuum in said suction discharge tube, in combination with an air inlet valve for said ,float chamber and an operative connection between the same and the float, for the pur. pose described.

6. A multiple turbine of 'the type described having an independent suction discharge tube for each vane wheel, an air y between the same and 4 to a normally chamber,

tube leading from one of-zsaid lsuction tubes air tight float chamber, a vertically movable container below said float a tubeextending 'from said fioat chamber to said Huid chamber and terminating below the fluid level inthe latter, whereby a vacuum column is created in said tube and oat chamber corresponding to the vacuumin said suction discharge tube, in combination with an air inlet valve for said float chamber and an operative connection the float, for the purpose described. r

7. A. multipleturbine of the type described having an independent suction discharge tube for each vane wheel, an air tube leading from one of said suction tubes to a normally air tight ioat chamber, a fluid container below said fioat chamber, a' tube extendingr from said float chamber to said iuid `chamber and terminating below the iuid level in the latter, whereby a vacuum column is chamb said suction dlscharge tube, 1n4 combination created in said tube and float with an air inlet valve for said float chamber and an operatlve connectlon between' the same and the float, together with a float in the tail race and a supporting connection between said ioat and the fluid. container whereby the vertical position of the latter is automatically varied by the float with the rise or fall of the tail race, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specication', in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. l

` FRITZ OESTERLEN.

Witnesses PAULINE MLLER, FRIDA KLAIBER.

er corresponding to the vacuum inl 

